Let me guess: The first time you popped in Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon™: Island Thunder™, you were expecting a hot action shooter. You charged ahead, looking for something to kill, and promptly found yourself face down in the dirt, with several large holes in places they shouldn't be. This isn't another first-person shooter, folks. This is more of a simulation than that. To survive in this world, you have to be smarter than the enemy, not stronger. So, slow it down, think it through, and you'll live a lot longer.
First things first, read the manual! There is a lot more complexity to the Ghost Recon games than you might expect, and learning how to use the interface (not to mention how to control your Ghost) is one of the most important things you can do. If you don't know how to give orders to your troops, then you won't be making much progress, and any strategy that I might offer you wouldn't help.
I've found that the most important thing to do is to study the map. While the mission area isn't unlimited, it isn't so small that you are going to just walk down a hallway to find your objectives. The first thing you want to do is get a feel for your overall route. Where are your mission objectives? How are you going to get there? Don't expect to have a chance to just rush over to it, in a straight line, shooting the enemies as you go. If there are multiple objectives, is it smart to send the Bravo unit over to accomplish that while Alpha takes the first objective? These are all questions you should be able to answer before you ever move.
Try not to be an easy target.
The reality of the situation is that your unit will almost always be out numbered by an enemy that is on his own turf. Surprise is your most important advantage, so don't waste it. Just because you can see an enemy, doesn't mean that you should shoot him right then and there. It might be smarter to maneuver around him, to find out where any of his allies might be. Once you know what else is around, feel free to take him out. The same is true for objective locations. Try to get as much information about what is there, as you move into it. Use higher ground and Binoculars or a sniper scope to have a look around. Stay low, and use the terrain for cover, while you are checking things out. And, for pity's sake, make sure your squad knows not to shoot at the first thing that pops up, if you are trying to be sneaky. If one person gets over-eager, your position has been given away, and if there is anyone nearby that you didn't know about, you can expect to be taking fire from them in short order.
Don't wake up the neighbors…
One of the more important aspects of Ghost Recon: Island Thunder is the equipment. Before each mission, you will have a chance to assign team members and their equipment. In some instances, you are going to need to maintain stealth above all else. If that is the case, you need to make sure that your squad isn't going to go barging in with un-silenced weapons. Gunfire is one way to make certain that every guard in the area knows that you are there. Remember that surprise thing we were talking about before?
Hope you brought the right tool for the job.
Of course, there are other times when noise isn't a concern, and you just need all the firepower possible. In that case, you will want to make sure that you aren't taking along troops that are lightly armed. Your weapons need to be tailored to match your mission. An MP5 isn't a long-range weapon, and a sniper rifle isn't going to be of much use inside a building. Once again, it boils down to knowing what your mission is going to be and planning accordingly. If you decide not to think things through, don't be surprised when you start losing troops. Remember that, while it is possible to complete a mission while taking losses, any men that are killed are dead. Last time I checked, resurrection wasn't part of the U.S. Army medical staff's training.
